Friday, November 23, 2007

Dedicated to Guy



An old friend of mine who I had lost contact with for a very long time died yesterday. I managed to re-establish contact with his sister two weeks ago on Facebook just as he was taking a turn for the worse. It turned out that he's been living in the same town as my son for years. The picture above is from around the time when I first met him, during his Mohican Phase.

Guy was a very talented and loveable individual who was diagnosed with MS about 10 years ago and stuggled with a series of infections. I had the honour of sitting with him for a while during his last days. I hope to dedicate a Hannya Shingyo ceremony to him in the next few days. I've been affected by this more than I would have expected.

This is how he defined himself on blogger:

I have been an Artist and Double Bassist. I was moving in elevated circles, and given time I could have been famous (yeah, but!) Nearly ten years ago, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). I am a great fan of the NHS. Much as the Labour party have done for the British, I have never been able to vote for Blair (No"History [WON'T] forgive him"). I am the father of a charming and lovely son, yet I am the last to experience his beautiful nature because I am deemed incapable or unworthy to care by his wonderful mother. I am a skeptic, yet accept the machinations around me combine to limit my options somewhat — I am paralysed and constrained by events: I am only here to find out what is awaiting me. Anti-Freudian, HOW CAN anyone say to me "Just move on"? That is a huge failure of imagination, sensibility, and I know that I have a responsibility to commentate on my condition. I believe in the Buddhist idea of fate.

Now I have no idea if he liked Radiohead, but I love this an it's dedicated to him.

5 comments:

  1. Love the picture! I am affected by this too and I never even met him except via blogs!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lovely post. Condolences.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you guys. In a way I hardly knew him. I hadn't seen him in over 15 years. But he did make a strong impression on me and I have vivid and fond memories of him from a very different time for each of us. It almost felt inappropriate to suddenly appear out of the woodwork after he has been suffering for so long to visit him as he was dying.

    I regret that I wasn't able to re-establish contact with him until so late.

    On Wednesday the 26th I'm going to dedicate a Buddhist ceremony to him. Monday 3rd is his funeral.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am so sad. I miss him so much already.

    ReplyDelete
  5. been thinking about guy today. i wonder.... i wonder.... if only things had been different.

    ReplyDelete